Wicked Lovely

Aislinn has always seen faeries. Not sweet, pretty, delicate little things, but dark, menacing and dangerous creatures. They walk about the streets unseen to all except Aislinn and her grandmother. Aislinn has been brought up to conceal her the fact that she can see the faeries. Her grandmother has never fully disclosed what happened to cause her mother's death but Aislinn knows the faeries had a part in it. What she doesn't know is that the faery king has his heart set on making her his queen and will stop at nothing to win. Can Aislin defeat him and his court? Read the book to find out - you won't be sorry.

Great descriptions (0/0 people found this helpful)

What I found fabulous about this book is the description. The faeries seem bizarre in their appearance and yet were portrayed in a way that made the reader feel that this is totally normal (horns, metalic hair and all!). I found the juxaposition of the real world and faeryland superbly done, so much so it can almost make you wonder if the slighly odd person in the next apartment may be more than they appear. Great book for faery lovers (especially if you like Brian Froud's artwork) as well as general sci-fi and adventure readers. Highly recommended.

Wicked and lovely? (7/9 people found this helpful)

I waited a long time to read this book, so by the time I finally found the time for it, I did have big expectations. Luckily, WICKED LOVELY managed to live upto them.

The story follows Aislinn, a young girl who can see faeries all around her. Although it makes life a little disturbing, she has lived by 3 rules, passed onto her by her grandmother:-
Rule #1: Don't attract the attention of faeries
Rule #2: Don't talk to invisble faeries
Rule #3: Don't stare at invisible faeries

The only problem is, the faeries don't seem to be abiding by the rules which govern them. Increasingly they are following Aislinn around, going to places where they are not meant to be able to follow. Aislinn's world no longer seems safe; she knows she should not trust faeries, but what do they want from her, why are they so interested in her?
And then Keenan comes into her life; a man who is unbelievably attractive. As Keenan pays more and more attention to Aislinn, she finally learns that he is The Summer King and he believes that Aislinn is his Summer Queen.
What follows is an examination of what happens when love, desire and destiny all seem to be at odds against each other. For, if Keenan is right, what will that mean for Aislinn's future?

Marr has done an excellent job at creating a fairytale for the twenty-first century. Unlike women in other fairytales, Aislinn is not the sort of girl to just accept her apparant destiny without a struggle, or even some form of negotiation. She creates a world which is believable and even wickedly tempting, when she talks of the fey folk walking alongside us. By including extracts of old books on fey belief and legend, Marr has also added a further touch of magic.
The characters are well developed - my personal favourites being Donia and the Winter Queen. I do not know if this is the first in a series, but Marr leaves us with an ending which could easily be a way of revisiting these characters and this world. I personally hope she does write a sequel, as it would be fantastic to see how the characters manage to live with their various roles.

The most enchanting story I've read in a long time! (2/2 people found this helpful)

I read this delightful book in one eight-hour sitting, torn between taking it slowly to savour every emotion and gobbling it up quickly to discover how all these wonderful characters fare in the end. It's totally unputdownable!

Melissa Marr's worldbuilding skill is superb. I found myself immersed very quickly. She gives us characters we can love, plunges them into difficult situations, then drives them rapidly and inevitably towards danger. I particularly like the way her main players have to juggle with moral pros & cons, in a world where taking one of the "right" options might harm as many innocent people as doing a "wrong" thing.

A wonderful read! Enjoy!

Courtesy of Teens Read Too (13/15 people found this helpful)

Aislinn has always followed the rules. Her Grandmother has drilled them into her since she was a young child. Don't stare at invisible faeries. Don't speak to invisible faeries. Don't ever attract the faeries' attention. Aislinn has developed the skill to ignore them. She walks past them without flinching, even when the faeries are pinching or touching others around her like they love to do.

Faeries come in many shapes and sizes and Aislinn has seen them all. She's seen them in the glamours they wear in order to pass as humans and can pick one out of a crowd even when they are trying to blend in. Aislinn has never been surprised by what she has seen them do - that is, until they start breaking the rules.

Faeries don't like steel. It causes them pain and weakens them. Because of that, Aislinn's "safe" place has always been Seth's house. Seth is a long-time friend who happens to live in a converted steel train car. Aislinn always knew that if she could make it there she'd have peace, because the faeries could never follow her into the train yard. But, something has changed. They are creeping closer and closer and paying more attention to her. They are even gathering outside Seth's place.

Aislinn really begins to worry when two faeries, Keenan and Donia, approach her and speak directly to her. She gets away from them as quickly as possible, now hyper-aware of the growing number of faeries surrounding and following her. She hears them say things like, "Do you think she's the one?" Aislinn realizes that in order to figure out what they want from her she is going to have to break the rules she's grown up with all of her life.

Keenan is the Summer King. His mother, the Winter Queen, has limited his powers and is slowly taking over the elements. Days are colder and eventually everything will be covered in ice, unless Keenan finds the girl who is meant to be his Summer Queen. Together they would have the power to overcome the Winter Queen's chill. Keenan thinks Aislinn is the one and she is in danger because of it. The Winter Queen will do everything she can to prevent her son from getting the power he needs to overthrow her. Another problem, of course, is that Aislinn doesn't want to be Summer Queen. She has avoided faeries all of her life and she sure doesn't want to become one now. Especially when her feelings for Seth have developed into more than friendship - and becoming the Summer Queen would mean spending an eternity with Keenan.

Melissa Marr has written a wonderfully inventive story that incorporates actual quotes from books written on the subject of faeries dating back to the 1800's. Her ability to keep a complicated story with several important characters clear to the reader is phenomenal. The relationship she creates between Aislinn and Seth is heartwarming, leading the reader to fall in love right along with them. If you aren't usually a fan of faerie stories, you might want to give this one a try. The blending of the realistic world and the world of the fey is masterfully done. You'll almost believe faeries are all around you.

Reviewed by: Karin Perry

Melissa Marr

Reader Reviews:

Faery tale (6/6 people found this helpful)

Great descriptions (0/0 people found this helpful)

Wicked and lovely? (7/9 people found this helpful)

The most enchanting story I've read in a long time! (2/2 people found this helpful)

Courtesy of Teens Read Too (13/15 people found this helpful)

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